On July 24 and 25, 2012, members of the Task Force on Admissions in the 21st Century gathered in Reston, Virginia, to discuss the progress made by the implementation team in addressing action items from the Task Force's Preserving the Dream of America 2008 report; the current environment for admission; and actions to be taken to further the task…

In May 1974, the Undergraduate Education Reform Project of the Southern Regional Education Board sponsored a small workshop for representatives from each of the 14 SREB states. The purpose of the regional workshop was to provide an opportunity for the state representatives to identify and examine issues connected with student transfer and to share…

Project Forum at the National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) and the National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE) worked together to collect information regarding the need for a policy forum on the topic of administrative collaboration between school personnel who support homeless education under the McKinney-Vento…

In an effort to depoliticize design-build contracts, the Commonwealth of Virginia created a management review board to determine whether a locality should be authorized to use a design-build contract in lieu of competitive sealed bidding. This paper explains that process. In order to employ a design-build contract for a specific construction…

A project described and examined the status of secondary trade and industrial (T&I) education in Virginia and made recommendations to improve such programs. Statewide enrollment data were retrieved for the school years 1986-87 through 1992-93. Questionnaires gathered concerns and recommendations of public school personnel about T&I…

The Virginia Department of Education is developing a plan that would require all students to complete a common core of learning with outcomes based on seven dimensions of living. Students successfully completing a statewide assessment of critical knowledge and skills by the end of 10th grade would continue their education by choosing one of three…

From 1989 until 1998 the U.S. Department of Education administered the National Workplace Literacy Demonstration Program. During that period, over $130 million supported some 300 projects where adult education programs partnered with thousands of businesses, agencies, and organizations to provide work-based skills to employees. While only seven…

This document contains two papers on excellence in business and education leadership. "Corporate Leadership in Improving Student Achievement" (Edward B. Rust, Jr.) explains why business must remain involved in education and discusses the following efforts of the State Farm Insurance Company to assume a leadership role in educational…

Arguing for a leadership role for Virginia's community colleges in the state's economic development, this paper describes the efforts of the Virginia Community College System (VCCS) and the Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) to meet the changing technological needs of business and industry. Section I provides an overview of the economic,…

The study examined the origins of higher education student assessment policy in Virginia, the current attitudes regarding assessment, and the implications and apparent directions of assessment policy in Virginia. The primary data sources were interviews with public officials and various document sources such as State Council of Higher Education…

The educational reform movement has caused parents, students, businesspersons, and legislators to question the relevance of vocational education. Charges that vocational education has become obsolete have compelled vocational educators to work on improving its image in three areas--function, quality, and style. The vocational education programs in…

Because of concerns about its ability to meet the shifting demands resulting from changes in today's society, the Virginia Extension Homemakers Council (VEHC) undertook a systematic program to change its organizational structure. In 1983, representatives of the VEHC and the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service (VCES) met to identify the causes…

This report defines and describes an advanced model of school-based management in Prince William County, a suburban district considered to be part of the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. It documents the shift from a "top-down" to a "bottom-up" school-based management approach based on input from parents, teachers,…

As rural communities strive to meet the demands of both their citizens and of higher levels of government for increased local services, they must rely more and more on outside assistance. The maze and complexity of federal and state mandates forces officials to seek technical assistance from a network of public and private agencies. The dynamics…

Project UNITE (Unified Intercommunity Transition and Empowerment for Youth and Young Adults with Disabilities) is a federally funded transition systems change grant in Virginia which attempts to integrate services among educational systems, human service agencies, communities, families, and consumers with disabilities who are involved in…